More College Consolidation? Will USU absorb CEU?

While the particulars between the possible University of Utah/Dixie College merger are still being ironed out, two other Utah colleges are talking about taking the plunge.

Price school a part of Utah State?
Area legislator: There are many questions to be resolved first
(Salt Lake Tribune, February 8 2008)

USU President's Response to Draft Bill Calling for Merger of CEU with USU
(USU website)

Sen. Mike Dmitrich of Carbon County has drafted a bill that would make the College of Eastern Utah in Price part of Utah State University in Logan. And while the bill has not been formally introduced, USU president Stan Albrecht is already entertaining the idea.

This merger also comes about as the legislature considers the merger of the Salt Lake Tooele Applied Technology Center (SLTATC) with Salt Lake Community College (SLCC).

Both moves would potentially shake up Utah's Board of Higher Education and may very well affect UVSC. These transitions would cost money...which means the pie gets a little smaller when UVSC comes asking the legislature for a slice.

Univeristy of Utah president "unapologetic" about tuition

Sunday's Tribune featured a scathing article on how top administrators at the University of Utah are cashing big checks while professors get incremental raises, and tuition soars.

Costs rise, U.'s elite get richer
Tuition has skyrocketed, profs see meager raises - but administrators' salaries grow leaps and bounds
(Salt Lake Tribune, December 16 2007)

But one of the most interesting statements came from U president Michael Young:
"I'm absolutely unapologetic about the cost of tuition. It should be three times as high for the quality of education here."

In other words...you can count on more tuition raises.

For those who might be interested in how UVSC salaries stack up head here

All about the Benjamins: looking at college presidents' salaries

Here is a nice little article about how Utah college presidents' salaries compare with their peers from around the country.


College presidents well paid in Utah
But they are way behind their national colleagues
(Deseret Morning News, November 13 2007)

Building a High-speed data link between Utah collleges

Utah State University and the University of Utah are discussing the possibility of building a high-speed data link between the two schools. The link would allow for greater collaboration and data sharing and would be a step closer to connecting all of Utah's public colleges and universities forming a "Utah Grid".

Data link proposed for Utah State, University of Utah
(Daily Herald, November 13 2007)

The Utah Education Network will be asking the state legislature for funding to start the program, but as of yet hasn't released any more details.

UVSC bucks statewide trend with positive enrollment numbers

The state Board of Education has released enrollment numbers for Utah's public colleges and universities, and while overall the numbers are flat UVSC gained the most students and had the second highest percentage of growth over last fall's numbers.

Enrollment remains flat at Utah colleges
Recruitment to become more competitive as numbers stay steady
(Salt Lake Tribune, October 12 2007)

While this news is no big surprise for UVSC, it is nice to see what numbers other schools are posting. Here are the headcounts for all nine schools:

U of U: 27,685 -2.15%
USU: 21,455 +1.10%
Weber: 17,089 -1.16%
SUU: 6,410 +4.94%
Snow: 3,202 -9.65%
Dixie: 5,209 -2.43%
CEU: 1,799 -3.95%
UVSC: 20,959 +3.44%
SLCC: 23,824 +0.01%

Higher Ed
Total: 127,632 -0.09%

If that number seems a little low for UVSC, who usually boasts of having 24,000 students we can only assume the state is not counting high school students taking in concurrent enrollment classes.

Dixie plays the all-too-familiar Name Game

Last year when UVSC was bucking for a promotion there were a few discussions about what to call the damn thing if it indeed became a univeristy. But Sederburg and the legislature settled on Utah Valley University pretty early on, and that was that. And since that time nobody has really made too much noise about it.

But now the Name Game is beginning down south as Dixie State College looks to hook up with the University of Utah. The situation in St. George is a little more convoluted when you consider that the region has been called Dixie since the time of Brigham Young, and that some object to it's Confederate connotations.

If St. George school hooks up with U of U, it may not be whistling Dixie
(Salt Lake Tribune, September 27 2007)

Even when you don't have a football team, you can still argue about football

If you are feeling a little more socially responsible lately it is probably because it is Ethics Week at UVSC. And with all the contentious ethical issues out there nothing gets people riled up faster than football.

2 UVSC profs deem BCS unethical
(Deseret Morning News, September 20 2007)

Maybe its just UVSC's way of extending an olive branch to all the Cougars and Utes out there, but professors Dennis Farnsworth and Jon Moore say that the schools in the Mountain West Conference should join other disgruntled athletic conferences and file an antitrust lawsuit against the Bowl Championship Series.

PHOTOS BY DON LAVANGE

Regents rank Colleges' wish list for building projects

Last Friday, representatives from Utah's public colleges and universities met with the state's all-powerful Board of Regents and asked for a combined $328 million in construction projects. And while everyone wants something built, chances are only four projects will see funding this year.


Regents pare wish list
Higher ed pitches $328 million in projects; top 4 ranked
(Deseret Morning News, September 15 2007)

No surprise that the University of Utah and Utah State's projects top the list; both schools are looking to replace or renovate buildings that are several decades old. Salt Lake Community College is looking to add a classroom building, and Southern Utah University wants one building to house all of their science departments and programs.

Of course UVSC wants a piece of the funding pie, and they are looking to get the dough necessary to build an addition to the Pope Science building. But the competition between other schools, and the fact that UVSC got the library wanted two years ago, will likely knock the project off the list when it goes to the State Building Board. The remaining projects will then go the legislature, which approved $88 million worth of building projects during the 2007 session.

So you want to be a U? Dixie State ponders future

Dixie State College announced last Friday that it is considering hooking its wagon to the University of Utah and becoming a satellite campus in an effort to expand the possibilities of higher education in Washington County.

Dixie says it weighs becoming U. satellite
(Salt Lake Tribune, September 8 2007)


Dixie State seeks partnership with U of U
(The Spectrum, September 8 2007)

Dixie State College Announces Plan to Pursue Enhanced Affiliation with the University of Utah
(From the Dixie State College website)

Essentially Dixie could very well follow the path of UVSC and become a university with a community college emphasis and open enrollment. Which leads us to a very interesting question, will UVSC support this move? Just because Dixie and the U have talked about it doesn't mean it's a done deal...far from it. The proposal will need to get approval from the Utah Board of Regents and the legislature.

And that process could be moved along considerably with the help of UVSC's voices on the Board of Regents (Marlon Snow, Jack Zenger, and Lucille Stoddard) and Utah County's all-powerful caucus (Senate president John Valentine tops the list).

And we might have a little quid pro quo action happening here. You might recall at the signing of SB 70 this past March that St. George representative Dave Clark was not only present, but spoke, and was widely praised by others for his support of UVSC's transition. At the time the Pipeline thought it seemed a little fishy for a St. George guy to be all buddy buddy with Utah County. Our bet is that UVSC and all its cronies will be backing up Dixie's move 100 percent.

And perhaps that is not such a bad thing. One thing is for certain though...the transition is going to cost money.

Utah Board of Regents looks for new commissioner

Utah's Commissioner of Higher Education Richard Kendell announced at the end of June that he would be stepping down from his lofty post by the end of the year. Kendell, a graduate of the University of Utah, was a vocal supporter of UVSC's move to university status during the past legislative session.

Board of Regents Announce Search for Commissioner of Higher Education (Utah System of Higher Education Press Release, August 14 2007)

Sederburg gets biggest raise among Utah's college presidents

Next time you see Bill Sederburg he just might have a big ol' grin on his face. That's because yesterday he and the other nine Utah public college presidents received a pay raise. And Big Bill's smile might be particularly wide because of all the raises handed out by the Board of Regents he got the highest percentage, no doubt reflecting the school's move to university status.

For all the details check the story out here:
Utah college presidents getting raises (Deseret Morning News)

Utah college presidents, commissioner to get raises (Daily Herald)

School presidents getting a pay raise (Salt Lake Tribune)

It is nice that UVSC's growth is being recognized and compensated accordingly. Now let's hope that this raise means Sederburg will be making more than Men's Basketball coach Dick Hunsaker.

UVSC's maturation ruffles some feathers around the state

When Gov. Jon Huntsman signs SB 70 next week and makes Utah Valley University a reality there will be a big celebration in the school's Grande Ballroom. But in other parts of the state residents won't exactly be dancing in the streets.

A recent editorial in the Ogden Standard-Examiner had some thoughts on how UVSC's progression might harm Weber State University and Utah State University:

We're also nervous about what granting "university status" to Utah Valley State College -- soon to become Utah Valley State University -- might do to funding at Utah State and Weber State universities. That initial $8 million bump to get the UVSU ball rolling has to come from somewhere, as will further allocations in future years. We can't help but suspect the Top of Utah's universities are being harmed by legislative leadership's Utah County mafia. We expect a building and development frenzy at UVSC/UVSU now, possibly at the expense of Weber and Utah State.



A Cedar City blogger expressed much of the same frustrations, as she feels then when the higher education pie gets split up the pieces will be smaller now that UVSC is at the table.

Of course people around the state said the same thing when Southern Utah State College made the jump to university not so long ago. And small players like Weber and SUU will always feel overshadowed by the bigger, more visible schools.

The thing UVSC must remember as it transforms to UVU is to be a good neighbor, especially to smaller schools like Weber and SUU. While the University of Utah and Utah State University get the lion's share of the funding (and as the state's research universities, they deserve it) UVSC often competes for scraps with SUU, Weber State. But fostering an adversarial relationship with these schools is counterproductive.

While SUU and Weber may whine about UVSC's big move now, eventually they will get over it, and it behooves all three schools to work together to show the legislature that Type II schools get the job done. UVSC could also use the support of the Regents from the Ogden and Southern Utah areas, especially when it comes time to grant new degree programs.

And that is a big issue. There is no doubt that constituents loyal to SUU and Weber were let down that UVSC's move came with virtually no opposition from the house or the senate. When it comes time to approve new degrees (especially those pesky new master's programs) it is easy to envision Regents from both areas giving the new guy some trouble. And you can count on departments and deans at both schools scrutinizing UVSC's new degree proposals with a fine-tooth comb.

If Big Bill doesn't mend some fences soon you can count on hassles down the road. UVU would also be smart to avoid overlap in master's programs currently offered at SUU and Weber. That being said there should be some wiggle room when it comes to market driven degrees like nursing, education, and business.

A University by any other name would smell as sweet

In all of the hoopla over Utah Valley State College becoming a university the thing that garners the most attention is what to call it when it happens. Utah Valley University is supposedly the working title that the administration and the legislature are working under now, but things could change. Recently, The Daily Herald ran an editorial calling for the name to honor UVSC's founder Wilson Sorensen.

While we sort of like the sound of Sorensen State University one problem might be that SSU sounds a lot like SUU (Southern Utah University). And for a school that has always had an identity crisis, not having its location in the name doesn't exactly put them on the map. But Sorenson State might still have a chance as one administator mentioned the possibility in passing last month.

Others have suggested Utah Valley State University or UVSU as a viable candidate, and keeping the shorthand Utah Valley State (a moniker that Bill Sederburg insisted on when he came to UVSC...going so far as to chip the word college off of signs around campus). One problem with the abbreviation UVS is that it is already used by the Utah Valley Symphony.

Still others claim that the school should honor its technical roots and go by Utah Tech (like Georgia Tech or Texas Tech). This actually sounds pretty cool and it is easy to see students calling it U-Tech. But an administrator told The Pipeline some time ago that they had investigated the other Techs and had found that in order to be called a Tech you need a certain ratio of technical degrees to regular degrees, something UVSC doesn't currently qualify for. It also ignores the very reason most believe the name change is happening anyways. People want "University" on their diploma. You could call it Utah Technical University, but then it starts to sound like a unaccredited private college like ITT or Devry. Besides www.utu.edu is already taken by the Ulster Teacher's Union in Ireland.

Most who oppose the name Utah Valley University claim that that it is too location-specific, and that the school wants to be seen as a viable option from people outside Utah Valley. But Utah State University and The University of Utah, the two most general names, are already taken.

In the end it will be the State Legislature that will decide the name change, and you can count on legislators from Salt Lake, Ogden, Cedar City, and Logan protecting their turf. Most of them don't want to share "University" with UVSC in the first place. But if State Sen. John Valentine forces the issue and they are backed in a corner, look for the name game to be a big part of the negotiating table. In which case a dark horse like Sorensen State University might have a chance.

Fulton's back the push for University Status

An article in today's Deseret News says that Arizona philanthropist Ira Fulton is backing UVSC's bid to become a regional university, and he is putting his money where his mouth is.

Fulton, who on Thursday wrote UVSC a check for over half a million dollars, says he will help the community raise $10 million dollars and challenge the State Legislature to do the same. Ira and his wife Mary Lou started the Fulton Challenge earlier this year, setting a goal for the college of $300,000 in fundraising. Unlike similar challenges made to the Arizona State and Brigham Young, UVSC actually not only met their goal put nearly doubled it...raising $512,000. The Fulton's matched those funds dollar for dollar.

The article is pretty decent, but fails to mention that the $10 million UVSC is looking for from the state is actually for on-going funds. That money will be used to hire more faculty to reduce the ratio of adjunct to fulltime faculty and to increase the number of professors with terminal degrees. The school will also need to hire more fulltime staff to handle the expected enrollment increases, retention, and added complexity that comes with offering graduate programs and a more comprehensive undergraduate program.

The general feeling on campus was that Fulton might continue to extend his considerable fundraising talents to UVSC. In the last 7 years The Fulton have given over $100 million to ASU, $82 million to BYU and $10 million to the University of Utah. The article says that Ira is also leading a campaign to raise a billion dollars total for ASU.

The Pipeline spoke with a Dean recently who said that administrators hoped that if the school did well with the Fulton Challenge in 2006 that perhaps Ira would continue to give money in 2007. That looks to be the case.